American Hazelnut (Corlyus americana and Corylus cornuta)
Exposure: Full sun to part shade. Zone 4.
Soil: Prefer well-drained, loamy soil.
Growth habits: Medium to fast growing, native, multiple-stemmed shrubs or small trees growing from 6-12 feet tall and often forming a dense thicket. Hazels have quite ornamental catkins through the winter that fill out and color up in early spring. The small nuts can be eaten and are often quite tasty, but this plant is best considered as a wildlife habitat and food plant that does well as a creekside, water garden, or riparian buffer plant. Two plants required for pollination. (American Hazelnut and Beaked Hazelnut DO NOT pollinate each other.)
Landscape uses: Shrub border, living fence, riparian buffer species.
Edible/Medicinal properties: Thick-shelled nuts with small, sweet kernels. Nuts are sweeter and softer in milk stage. Native to North America.
Available Types
'Beaked Hazelnut', Corylus cornuta - A thicket-forming native plant that produces edible ½ inch nuts. $39.00/5 gal.
'American Filbert', Corylus americana - A clump-forming, large, native shrub with small edible nuts. $30.00/3 gal., $39.00/5 gal.